Monday, October 13, 2008

I quit smoking most recently in July, 2007. I fell off the wagon recently, but I'm only going to let it be a short drag down the quit smoking road this time. That will require its own post sometime later, but for now I'd like to share the immediate-term effects I've noticed since I've started smoking again. I started smoking again seventeen days ago. Keep in mind that I hadn't smoked in about sixteen months before this, so I was thoroughly free of any smoking symptoms or side effects.

When people consider the side effects and health implications of smoking, they tend to think long term. That is to say, the effects upon which they most often focus are long-term effects. Things like the shortness of breath that will make a flight of stairs look like a mountain, or cancer, or emphysema, or Alzheimer's.

It's kind of hard to take quitting smoking seriously when your main deterrents are things that will become problems in a couple of decades. To show that I'm not just making this up, Here's one report that shows that older people are more successful at quitting smoking, as are those who have been diagnosed with cancer. There's plenty more information like this out there, but basically it's more difficult to feel threatened by something you've never experienced, or at least seen pretty close up.

Back to the topic at hand - smoking side effects. In the last seventeen days, I'm honestly quite surprised at the things I've noticed. More accurately, I'm surprised at how quickly I'm able to notice them.

The first thing was the cough. That damned persistent smoker's cough was back within about 3-4 days. I really thought it would take longer. If you're reading this, I don't have to say much more about the cough; You know the drill by now.

Another surprise was how quickly I went broke. In these couple of weeks, I have spent around $100-120 USD on cigarettes. That's more than I've spent on clothing and shoes combined for myself all year. I'm a little bit of a cheapskate with unnecessary spending, which just makes it that much more ridiculous that I should find myself spending so much on poisoning myself. It would be cheaper to snort gasoline.

Then there's sleep. I sure would enjoy some of it right about now. A few weeks ago I was sleeping wonderfully. Since I started smoking again, my sleep has been very fitful. I rarely sleep for more than 2-3 hours without waking up at least once, sometimes much more often. Sometimes I'll sleep for 4-5 hours, stare at the ceiling for an hour, and just give up on the whole thing. When I get six hours, I feel like an angel must have followed me home.

In slightly related news, I'm definitely recalling more dreams than before. I normally rarely have any dreams that I remember, where recently I have some recall more than half the time upon awakening (and there's been a lot of awakening).

I'm down to two meals a day, sometimes more like one and a half. I have virtually no appetite, and I've lost about four pounds. The weight loss is about the only thing on this list that some might consider a benefit. Not so for somebody of my build.

My sense of smell has gotten very weak again. I could never really smell anything except for the strongest smells when I was smoking before. Thinking back, I thought it had taken several weeks for me to get my sense of smell to start coming back when I quit smoking before. Checking my previous posts, it turns out that it only took a week. I'm right back to being unable to smell food unless I'm sitting right in front of it, and basically not able to smell all but the strongest odors. That includes the full ashtray on the porch, which I used to be able to smell from a dozen feet away, or the leftover smoke in the car or laundry that I used to catch from time to time. Now, nothing.

My circulation has started down a slow slide into the crapper, as well. I have been having a hard time finding a comfortable sleeping position, because my arms go pins and needles after only a few minutes. The good news is that the circulation issue hasn't become as bad as is used to be yet, as I am not hyper-sensitive to even the slightest of chilly temperatures like I used to be. Back in the old smoking days, I'd start complaining by the time it got below 67 degrees (which is around nine months out of the year in these parts).

That's all I can come up with right now, though it's really quite a lot of side effects for smoking just over two weeks. Cough, money problems, sleep problems, loss of appetite, diminished sense of smell and negative effects on the circulatory system.

Monday, July 30, 2007

Quitting smoking is hard work, and while there's not a single magic formula to make it easy to quit, or one best way to quit smoking that works for everybody, there are things that you can do to make it easier on yourself when the cravings hit.

I chose to quit cold turkey, but whatever method you are using, the early days and weeks will test your willpower with nicotine withdrawals and cravings. The best way I've found to beat those cravings is to substitute something for the cigarette.

At the most basic level, it doesn't really matter what you do, so long as you don't smoke! Some people even use text messaging as a substitute. It has been shown in studies that these cravings only last for 3-5 minutes, so anything you can do to stop yourself from smoking for these few minutes (which may seem like an eternity), will have you one step closer to becoming a nonsmoker for good.

"What can I do, Chris?" I hear you asking. That's perfect, since I have put together a list of lists, if you will (you know you want to), of things you can do instead of smoking a cigarette. Remember, doing anything is better than doing nothing.

DO STUFF INSTEAD OF SMOKING:

Keep a journal. Writing about how you're feeling or what you're doing when those cravings sneak up on can help you gain insight. You can read these entries later, and by the time you're done overanalyzing them, the craving will have passed.

Start a blog. Blogging is fun, and can be likened to a journal or diary without all the erasing.

Go to sleep. Sleep can be your best friend, especially for those first few days when you're still suffering physical withdrawal symptoms. No matter how hardcore a smoker you used to be, you can't smoke in your sleep.

Visualize yourself as a non-smoker. Paint a mental image of yourself with pretty, pink, healthy lungs and other organs.

Breathe. Take a slow, deep breath while you count to four. Feel the clean air refreshing your body as the oxygen is carried to the tips of your fingers and toes. Hold the breath for a count of four, then exhale slowly over a count of four. Finally, allow the air to remain expelled from your healing lungs for, you got it, a four count. Repeat.

Got kids? It may sound like some corny slogan, but if you have youngsters of your own, or nieces or nephews hanging around, spend some quality time doing anything with them. It will be difficult to light up smoke while doing a jigsaw puzzle or playing a game of checkers. Besides, you never get these early years back.

GO SOMEWHERE THAT YOU CANNOT SMOKE:If you're somewhere that you can't smoke, then you won't be smoking, right? These will depend largely on your location, but smoking is being snuffed out in all kinds of public places across the globe. Hopefully some of these will be safe havens in your area.

Movie theatre

Bookstore

Coffee Shop

Library

Shopping mall

House of Worship

DO SOMETHING THAT MAKES IT PHYSICALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO SMOKE:Some activities just don't go with smoking cigarettes. Spend a couple minutes with one or more of them.

Wash your hands. Remember the wrists and forearms.

Take a shower or bath. Maybe not impossible to smoke in there strictly speaking, but you should be able to distract yourself in there for long enough to get that nice clean feeling, and come out of it smelling like a rose.

Chew on a straw. May look funny hanging out of your mouth, but not funnier than a blazing death stick.

Mint toothpicks are the greatest things since sliced bread, which we all know is one of the greatest pre-Edison inventions ever to fit into a breadbox.

INSTRUMENTS YOU CAN LEARN:You might not get much local radio play, but these instruments are easy enough to make sounds with, and if you've never tried them, you might be surprised how addicting they can be. Much safer than the old smoking addiction.

Keyboard/piano. Just push the black and white buttons. Use both hands, and leave the ashtray outside.

Harmonica. Inexpensive and foolproof.

Guitar. A little tougher to get started with, but with either an instructor or a good book you can be making melodies within a short time.

Harp. I haven't tried one of these (yet), but in searching online for opinions on the easiest instruments to get started with, it came up again and again. The main negatives seem to be difficulty finding instruction, and it appears that all product choices are relatively expensive when compared to the others.

EXERCISE:Exercising doesn't have to mean three hours at the gym. Exercise to quit smoking only has to last a few minutes, remember. Here are a few exercises that will stimulate the body, and keep you away from the cigarettes for as long as you can keep them up.

Pushups. You can do modified pushups (with your knees on the floor) if you're not ready for full pushups yet.

Punching bag. It's a commitment getting one of these and setting it up, but it's worth every violent moment. Sometimes you just need to beat the crap out of something, and stopping smoking is likely the best excuse you'll find.

Jump rope. Actually a deceptively challenging activity.

Swim. If you're fortunate enough to have access to a pool or natural body of water, swimming is said to be one of the best all around exercises in which you can get involved.

Go for a bike ride. You haven't forgotten how to ride, have you? Here's another activity that will stop you from thinking about cigarettes, yet can be done for any length of time and at any intensity level. Bring a water bottle, and enjoy the scenery.

Walk. Feel free to bring along a friend or two.

Jog or run. Like walking, but faster. With this, you get the bonus of being able to slow to a walk in the middle, thus doing two exercises on the list in one session.

KEEP YOUR HANDS BUSY:After a few days of quitting smoking, the nicotine is gone from your system and the cravings are mainly psychological in nature. Part of this is that your hands are trained to grab a cigarette at certain intervals or when bored.

Draw something. Don't have an artistic bone in your body? Use tracing paper to get started; You might just surprise yourself with a little practice.

Cook. Can't cook? Learn to cook. Which brings us to...

EATING INSTEAD OF SMOKING:Everybody worries about the weight gain when quitting smoking. This is because the habit of constantly having a cigarette in your mouth is easily replaced by stuffing your face with food. This is actually a pretty good idea, if you don't let yourself go down the road of sugary candies and ice cream. Here are some less damaging alternatives.

Sunflower seeds. These are my favorite cigarette substitute, aside from sweets. In the shells, and salted to hell and back. It can be ugly finding a place to spit all those shells, and make sure to drink plenty of water to offset the salt.

Pickles

Raisins

Celery

Grapes

Oranges

Berries. Any kind of berries, maybe try something new. Blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, whatever. And for the record, these are all being counted as one list item so I don't want to hear any nonsense about padding my list to make it look like more things.

Spearmint leaves

Gum. sugarless

Yogurt

Popcorn

Cinnamon sticks are another interesting thing you can let hang out of your face-hole that don't require ownership of a lighter or matches.

Lollipops. Yes, they're technically sweets, but you can get them sugar free I guess, and they take a long time to get through, so they're not as bad as the other sweets I'm not listing.

Carrot sticks

Orange juice. I remember not wanting to have a cigarette after drinking orange juice because of the bad way the smells of OJ and cigs mix, and it's still true.

Water or ice water

Seltzer or tonic water

Ice cubes or shavings

Made it this far? Good. If you were having a nightmare craving before, you're probably feeling a little better now that a few minutes have passed. If not, you'll be better equipped for next time you do.

(HealthNewsDigest.com) July, 2007 - While most Americans are keenly aware of the potentially deadly health consequences of cigarette smoking on the heart and lungs, many smokers don't realize the effects that smoking can have on the health of their skin.

We've very likely reached the point where most people with either an adequate education or any exposure to media are aware of the dangers of cigarette smoking.

My eight year old can tell you about that you need the cilia within your lungs to be functioning well if you expect to hold your own at the gym, and that if you've been a smoker for any length of time, that probably ain't happening.

Monday, July 16, 2007

When I initially decided to stop smoking, one of the major factors was the money that I could save. Here in New Jersey, it's well over six dollars a pack. Figuring myself at a little over a pack a day, that's an easy 50 bucks weekly, two hundred a month.

If you're giving up cigarettes, or have given them up, you've surely considered the money spent over the years. What are you doing with yours? Something, I hope.

I keep mine tucked away, and every once in awhile it's a nice bonus to have it there for impulse spending. Depending on circumstances, a person could easily use that cash to go out to dinner or have some kind of a night on the town every couple of weeks.

Maybe you want a copy of Guitar Hero, or your own domain name (just so you know, it's uber-geeky to have your own name registered as a dot com, I think I'm gonna go for it). Hell, for that kind of money, you can probably make payments on a nice entry level car. When I say nice, I mean that it's this year's model, not necessarily nice as in power windows and air conditioning.

I guess it's been about nine days quit for me today, and I didn't have any really bad cravings over the weekend consciously, but I was halfway between insomniac and inconsolable most of yesterday. Managed to sleep like a rock overnight, and today is much better.

I'm taking myself camping this coming weekend with my quit money, what are you doing with yours?

Friday, July 13, 2007

The myth is true. one of the side effects when you stop smoking, is you usually gain weight. Day 6 of my quit has me at plus 3 pounds. Not terrible, all things considered. Remember that last time I tried to quit smoking, I gained a few pounds, but lost it all within three weeks, only to gain more weight shortly thereafter. Sigh.

Where does this weight come from? It's an unfortunate combination of a few things. Firstly, smoking increases your metabolism. When you stop, your metabolic rate may slow by as much as 20%, causing you to burn less calories. The average weight gain for a quitter is said to be somewhere in the 5-20 lb. range. That's 2-9 Kgs or so for my international readers. What's that, you say? You're not into statistics? Okay, here's the simple version: you have to do something or you're going to start getting to be quite the fattie!

Did you know? more than one third of readers to this blog are from outside the U.S.A.?

The logical (not to be confused with easy!) choices to counteract this weight gain would be to either raise the metabolism via exercise, or eat less. Maybe up to 20% less. Yeah, right.

The thing is, when you stop smoking your senses of taste and smell start improving pretty quickly, and you'll probably enjoy some foods more. Especially stuff that's full of sugar and carbs. Yeah, the stuff that will pack on the pounds most quickly.

My recommendations are to increase your activity level by starting a new workout routine, or at least adding whatever activity you can. Maybe walk down to the end of the driveway to pick up the mail instead of driving, stop sending the intern down to pick up lunch everyday, and make yourself something healthy in the morning instead, or at least take the walk yourself.

Combine this with a little extra willpower and common sense regarding your eating habits, and you should be able to minimize the weight gain commonly attached to quitting smoking. No more midnight snacks, fattie!

Much of this info I remember from past studying, and cannot cite the sources. There are however, a couple of excellent articles listed on the topic over at Maggie's Mind, along with 30 or 40 other "linky loos" (don't looky-loo at me, I didn't make it up) to all sorts of quitting resources.

As for me, I think I'm going to try to finish my super awesome surprise post, which won't get published until at least Monday, because nobody ever reads my stuff on the weekends. Good for you guys, get out there and do something fun this weekend!

Hey, I made it through this whole thing without mentioning that it's Friday the 13th, how cool is that?

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Coming off nicotine will trigger withdrawal symptoms that vary widely from individual to individual. One thing that seems true though, is that the symptoms seem to be worse and longer lasting for people who have been smokers for longer periods of time. So if you're considering quitting the cancer sticks, it will be easier on you if you start sooner rather than later.

Most of the nicotine is gone from your system between three and seven days after your last cigarette. If you're still experiencing discomfort after that time, it's good advice to adopt the mindset that the worst of your symptoms will be disappearing any time now.

Think mind over matter, and use it to your advantage. Don't talk yourself into having prolonged withdrawal symptoms.

It's been around three and a half days for me, and I still might be just a little more irritable than normal (it can be hard to decide if this is even a withdrawal symptom for me, as I can go from zero to crabass in less than four seconds if I haven't gotten enough beauty sleep), but otherwise my worst thing might be the not-quite-quenchable tendency to eat anything sweet that finds itself in my field of vision.